Many areas of our lives have been affected by Covid-19 & contact with children is no exception. New guidance issued by the Lord President earlier this month however looks to address this. This guidance is in line with the general easing of rules by the Scottish Government and a move away from the general ‘stay at home’ principle previously applied.
The latest guidance confirms that where there is a Court order in place, or other formal agreement between parties regulating contact, then those arrangements previously recorded should now be adhered to. Whilst the guidance acknowledges a parent/carer may remain concerned about children moving between households due to Coronavirus, this will not automatically be accepted should the matter end up before a Court again. The Court will take a dim view of anybody trying to take advantage of the pandemic & any parent/carer wishing to deviate from the previous contact arrangement will have to demonstrate they have acted “reasonably and sensibly in all of the circumstances of the case”.
With the onus being on the non-compliant parent/carer then this should reduce the number of individuals who previously could not exercise contact.
If anyone in my network wants to discuss this further then please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
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Thanks very much for sharing your expertise on this here Tom